Ghostfeeder is the type of act who experiments non-stop until they can find their perfect sound. Four EPs and lots of tweaks with live performances have allowed them to formulate a unique sound in the electro-industrial scene, and has also led up to their debut album World Fameless. Located below you can stream the track 'Let the Wolves Inside' from the album as a soundtrack for the interview located below with half of the duo Derek Walborn!

Hi, hi, hi there! Welcome to Brutal Resonance Ghostfeeder. Let's start off right away and talk history. 2010 saw the foundation of your project and as I can see via Facebook there are currently two members in the band: Derek Walborn and Luke Dangler. Tell me how you two met and what led to the creation of Ghostfeeder.

Derek: Hello and thank you very much for having me. I met Luke after I put out an ad on Craigslist looking for a guitarist for Ghostfeeder, which was in its very early formative stages but had played a couple of shows with a previous guitar player who ended up having to move out of town. I got three responses and scheduled the interested people to all come in on the same day to meet and audition them. Luke was the only one who showed up! Thankfully he is a great guitarist and all around cool guy who I have a lot in common with, so it worked out.

I see that one of you is located in Northeastern USA while the other is Southeastern USA with a few states in between. Does that make contacting each other a bit difficult when crafting music or does communication through the internet make that fairly easy?

Derek: The internet has really erased all boundaries, especially when it comes to this genre. Long distance relationships are no longer deal breakers unless you are planning on staying local. After going on the road last summer with En Esch as a two piece, I moved from New York to Florida and decided to work towards focusing the project in such a way that it would be a regularly nationally touring entity. Since moving I have also played a handful of shows in Florida as a one piece. There are a lot of possibilities and flexibility with the project right now. I can perform solo and gear my set towards a very synthetic sound, or play as a two piece and have the guitar turn Ghostfeeder into an electronic rock duo. It’s very liberating to have the “band” be so easily portable when so many other musicians are constantly bogged down with their schedules, band members, locations, and logistics. I’ve been there and I am really enjoying how much more focused and simple the project has been this past year.

So far, I've found four different EPs starting in 2010 with The Signal, followed by 2011's Social Accessory, then onto 2012's Hard Times For Dreamers, and ending with 2014's The Messenger. This has all led to now with the release of World Fameless imminent. How did Ghostfeeder mature through each EP? And why did you feel as if now would be the best time to release your first full length album?

Derek: Every release definitely has its own particular flavor and is a snapshot of my life at the time. When I wrote and recorded The Signal, it was largely just to see if I could. I didn’t know if I would pursue the idea any further or attempt to take it to the stage, but I knew I wanted to finally make some electronic/industrial music after years of being a guitarist in a couple of traditional rock bands. It was an experiment at the time. It’s a bit hard for me to listen to it now, but some of those songs still have staying power when it comes to playing them live. They have evolved to still fit in with newer tracks.

Social Accessory, I think, really set the tone for the trajectory of Ghostfeeder. I refined my intentions and put together a noisy, depressing little EP. I was inspired by the themes of decadence and despair present on albums like Deftones’ Around The Fur and NIN’s The Downward Spiral. All that noise and dirt. Around The Fur especially sounds like some kind of incredibly depressing, depraved party happening on the hottest day of the year, and I have always been inspired by how that album makes me feel. It was during and after this EP’s release that Ghostfeeder started to take on a live format, with guitar, bass, and drums accompanying the electronic backing track.

Hard Times For Dreamers was my effort to make an album that sounded more like the project’s live sound. By this time we were playing regularly and gaining fans. Thanks to the rather limited soundscape of Rochester, NY we kept getting booked with metal bands and I kept hearing how much people preferred the heavier, live sound to the much more electronic recordings. I would love to go back in time and ignore all of that completely, because this was the only release I have ever put out where I allowed an outside influence to have an effect on my work. In my opinion, it was to the detriment of the final product, but I won’t mention why for fear of influencing people’s perception of the music.

The Messenger was my way of rectifying all of that. The antithesis of the previous EP, The Messenger was a decidedly electronics-based, highly conceptual EP about alien abduction with a lot of other sci-fi/spiritual elements mixed in. I wrote the EP I wanted to write without compromise and with no regard to how I might be able to pull it off live with the band I had at the time. I think it opened me up to more storytelling, both thematically and lyrically. The Messenger has been my most atmospheric, thoughtful release and I’m still really pleased with how it turned out. In spite of myself, I learned a great deal about songwriting during its creation.

World Fameless is my first full length release mostly because I had so much material to work with! I wrote a great deal on the road and I had a lot to parse through and develop when I got back to my studio. I figured it was time to release something with a little more oomph to it. It all just lined up and came together nicely. It was just time for it to happen.

With four Eps under your belt, how are you prepared to tell the world that World Fameless will be a different kind of electro-industrial that they haven't seen from your project as of yet? What's different about this record than the others?

Derek: World Fameless really takes a lot of what I learned in creating The Messenger and applies it to a more song-driven release. I tried to make every track on the album a potential single but still maintain its integrity as an album that can take the listener on a journey. Not many of the tracks are from my perspective, narratively. The record is front-loaded with some punchy, upbeat, very traditional-sounding Ghostfeeder tracks to get people involved right off the bat. Guitars are present, but not as up front where they used to be. They have become more of a textural element. The album changes the deeper you get into it. About half of the way through, the subject matter of the material takes a more introspective, much less satirical turn. World Fameless sets up a certain expectation early on, but then changes the game subtly enough that the listener never realizes that they went from rocking out industrially to being throbbed by a hybrid electronic/tribal dance beat that I created by recording myself beating pots and pans with drumsticks. By the end of the album, I think listeners will find themselves in a very different mode than they were in at the onset. I feel that this transition is also indicative of the direction I am moving Ghostfeeder in: with less reliance on the standards I have set up for the project in the past and more willingness to embrace the unpredictable and the minimal. I’m hoping this release will guide fans into a new era of Ghostfeeder by starting them with the familiar, and easing them into some new territory, hopefully leaving them satisfied, but eager to hear what’s next.

You recently released a psychedelic music video called 'Let The Wolves Inside'. This song is serving as a precursor to World Fameless. How has the song been received? I also see that you made the video; why did you decide to make the video in such a fashion? Was it just for style or was there a deeper meaning?

Derek: The song has been very well-received, which means a lot to me because I feel like, sonically, it represents the turning point for the album as well as the project itself that I mentioned previously. It would have been safer for me to release one of the earlier, more immediate songs off of the album as the first single, but I thought it was important that people be “re-introduced” to Ghostfeeder. The video for 'Let The Wolves Inside' is, to be frank, a purely a visual effort and not tied into the meaning of the song. However, it does call back once more to the more synthetic, minimal, electronic future I have planned.

And what is the new album World Fameless all about? It seems to have a bit of a celebrity pop culture parody going on, but I think there's more to it than that. Or maybe I'm completely wrong. What does the title stand for to you and why did you choose it?

Derek: The title is absolutely tongue in cheek and is meant to be a sarcastic look at the fact that hard work and endurance does not always guarantee success exactly how you want it to be, so deal with it! As a rule, I hate being cynical. I feel like it’s an easy, lazy way out of facing your own insecurities. If you say the deck is stacked against you all the time, then you don’t even have to try to make something of yourself. That’s not at all my style. However, I dipped my toe in the cynical pool for the title track of the album and it felt good to vent a little “frustrated artist” angst just for the sake of having some fun. I’m a huge fan of Mindless Self Indulgence, and the way Jimmy is able to make such sharp social satire while also being so self-deprecating is really, I think, an overlooked asset to that band. I give my adoration for that kind of lyrical push and pull some credit for the creation of the title track.

The title’s origin is unclear to me. I remember Luke joking that we were becoming “World Fameless” at some point. I really liked the irony and contradiction present in those two words. In spite of the eight million other terrible puns that have happened between us, this one lingered in my memory and felt like it somehow meant something significant. It felt like an iconic-sounding name. It has just the right amount of snark/self-deprecation to make people feel like they can be in on the joke.

Whatever themes and what-not you attempted to bring out with the title of the album, do you think you were able to both bring that out lyrically and musically on the album? If so, how?

Derek: I do feel that I was able to bring my ideas to fruition, although I think that much of what the title says expires as soon as the first song is over, lyrically. The title was meant more to be a snapshot of who I am and where I am at the time of this album’s release as opposed to a pervasive theme in the music itself.

I guess the biggest question when it comes to your new album is: How do you feel about World Fameless? Do you think it's your best work to date? Or do you find yourself wanting to go back and fix up the album here and there?

Derek: World Fameless is definitely the Ghostfeeder album that people should hear first. It’s an ideal primer. I think it serves as a good introduction to the project as it covers a wide spectrum and shows the breadth of what Ghostfeeder can be. It’s in my nature to micromanage and nitpick myself into oblivion, but I definitely do feel that this is my strongest, most focused release thus far.

Any personal favorite songs on the album that you would absolutely point out to listeners as the go-to track on the album?

Derek: 'Claws And Teeth'. I wouldn’t say that it’s the album’s “go-to” track, but it’s an important song to me, as it was written lyrically almost immediately after the attacks in Paris. I’m not sure if it’s me getting older and softer or the result of being regularly bombarded with tragedy over the past few years, but these mass murders and attacks are beginning to have a profound effect on me. Paris left me terribly angry and then the recent shooting in Orlando not only hit close to home geographically, but just made me so terribly upset. Never in my entire life has a news story brought me to literal tears, but that made it happen. With every new massacre, I just feel more and more hopelessly frustrated. For me, making music is the only way I can vent certain frustrations or soothe very specific kinds of sadness.

'Claws And Teeth' is about how we dress up in our fancy clothes, drive around in our cars and go to the shopping mall, but human beings are still absolute animals. We pretend that we aren’t. We pretend that violence is abhorrent, but it’s present in almost every form of entertainment we have. We take too much pleasure in punishment. We don’t have to kill to survive anymore, so we have had to find new, ridiculous reasons to do it. I feel that we are capable of more than being angry and violent, but until we are able to shed whatever brand of fear causes us to have so much disdain for one another we’re going to be stuck. At the time of me writing this I am just learning that there was an attack in Turkey at an airport. When is this going to end?

And what does the future hold for Ghostfeeder? Live shows, remixes, a not-so-far-off EP? Could you tell us about any of that or any other plans you may have with Ghostfeeder?

Derek: There will be more national touring in the near future and into next year that I am not at liberty to disclose just yet, but I am very excited about it. I don’t have concrete plans at this point for the next record, although I definitely have some new songs in the works, as always, as well as a theme that I am considering exploring. The next album will, I think, have a lot more in common with The Messenger than World Fameless. I’m looking forward to possibly telling another story and further pushing myself into unexplored, weird, minimal territory. If you’re not scared, you’re not improving. That’s what I tell myself, anyway! I am also planning on shooting a series of videos of myself performing live in my practice space in the coming months. I’d like to give people that aren’t able to see me play in person a chance to get to know what a Ghostfeeder performance looks and sounds like these days.

And, lastly, I'd like to thank you for your time and wish you the best! The space below is yours to say what you wish. Cheers!

Derek: Thank you so much for the opportunity to share my thoughts with you and tell everyone a bit about Ghostfeeder. I would like to remind readers that they can stay in touch with me by liking Ghostfeeder on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

World Fameless and all of my past EPs, shirts, and even original paintings can be purchased at Bandcamp, and my new video for 'Let The Wolves Inside' can be viewed on YouTube.

I have a lot of fun online and I love meeting new fans. Social media has really become the cornerstone of success in this business and I encourage everyone to reach out to their favorite artists and get in touch with them. Share their work across platforms, comment on their posts, and let them know you appreciate what they do! The world will be better as a result, I promise.

I’d also like to give a shout out to Jim at Distortion Productions for releasing World Fameless and believing in the project as well as my girl Jen for always lending a helpful ear, being beyond supportive, and (most of the time) keeping me from going crazy in such a weird, unpredictable, and constantly changing pursuit of a life in music.

Ghostfeeder

Ghostfeeder is the type of act who experiments non-stop until they can find their perfect sound. Four EPs and lots of tweaks with live performances have allowed them to formulate a unique sound in the electro-industrial scene, and has also led up to their debut album World Fameless. Located below you can stream the track 'Let the Wolves Inside' from the album as a soundtrack for the interview located below with half of the duo Derek Walborn!

Hi, hi, hi there! Welcome to Brutal Resonance Ghostfeeder. Let's start off right away and talk history. 2010 saw the foundation of your project and as I can see via Facebook there are currently two members in the band: Derek Walborn and Luke Dangler. Tell me how you two met and what led to the creation of Ghostfeeder.

Derek: Hello and thank you very much for having me. I met Luke after I put out an ad on Craigslist looking for a guitarist for Ghostfeeder, which was in its very early formative stages but had played a couple of shows with a previous guitar player who ended up having to move out of town. I got three responses and scheduled the interested people to all come in on the same day to meet and audition them. Luke was the only one who showed up! Thankfully he is a great guitarist and all around cool guy who I have a lot in common with, so it worked out.

I see that one of you is located in Northeastern USA while the other is Southeastern USA with a few states in between. Does that make contacting each other a bit difficult when crafting music or does communication through the internet make that fairly easy?

Derek: The internet has really erased all boundaries, especially when it comes to this genre. Long distance relationships are no longer deal breakers unless you are planning on staying local. After going on the road last summer with En Esch as a two piece, I moved from New York to Florida and decided to work towards focusing the project in such a way that it would be a regularly nationally touring entity. Since moving I have also played a handful of shows in Florida as a one piece. There are a lot of possibilities and flexibility with the project right now. I can perform solo and gear my set towards a very synthetic sound, or play as a two piece and have the guitar turn Ghostfeeder into an electronic rock duo. It’s very liberating to have the “band” be so easily portable when so many other musicians are constantly bogged down with their schedules, band members, locations, and logistics. I’ve been there and I am really enjoying how much more focused and simple the project has been this past year.

So far, I've found four different EPs starting in 2010 with The Signal, followed by 2011's Social Accessory, then onto 2012's Hard Times For Dreamers, and ending with 2014's The Messenger. This has all led to now with the release of World Fameless imminent. How did Ghostfeeder mature through each EP? And why did you feel as if now would be the best time to release your first full length album?

Derek: Every release definitely has its own particular flavor and is a snapshot of my life at the time. When I wrote and recorded The Signal, it was largely just to see if I could. I didn’t know if I would pursue the idea any further or attempt to take it to the stage, but I knew I wanted to finally make some electronic/industrial music after years of being a guitarist in a couple of traditional rock bands. It was an experiment at the time. It’s a bit hard for me to listen to it now, but some of those songs still have staying power when it comes to playing them live. They have evolved to still fit in with newer tracks.

Social Accessory, I think, really set the tone for the trajectory of Ghostfeeder. I refined my intentions and put together a noisy, depressing little EP. I was inspired by the themes of decadence and despair present on albums like Deftones’ Around The Fur and NIN’s The Downward Spiral. All that noise and dirt. Around The Fur especially sounds like some kind of incredibly depressing, depraved party happening on the hottest day of the year, and I have always been inspired by how that album makes me feel. It was during and after this EP’s release that Ghostfeeder started to take on a live format, with guitar, bass, and drums accompanying the electronic backing track.

Hard Times For Dreamers was my effort to make an album that sounded more like the project’s live sound. By this time we were playing regularly and gaining fans. Thanks to the rather limited soundscape of Rochester, NY we kept getting booked with metal bands and I kept hearing how much people preferred the heavier, live sound to the much more electronic recordings. I would love to go back in time and ignore all of that completely, because this was the only release I have ever put out where I allowed an outside influence to have an effect on my work. In my opinion, it was to the detriment of the final product, but I won’t mention why for fear of influencing people’s perception of the music.

The Messenger was my way of rectifying all of that. The antithesis of the previous EP, The Messenger was a decidedly electronics-based, highly conceptual EP about alien abduction with a lot of other sci-fi/spiritual elements mixed in. I wrote the EP I wanted to write without compromise and with no regard to how I might be able to pull it off live with the band I had at the time. I think it opened me up to more storytelling, both thematically and lyrically. The Messenger has been my most atmospheric, thoughtful release and I’m still really pleased with how it turned out. In spite of myself, I learned a great deal about songwriting during its creation.

World Fameless is my first full length release mostly because I had so much material to work with! I wrote a great deal on the road and I had a lot to parse through and develop when I got back to my studio. I figured it was time to release something with a little more oomph to it. It all just lined up and came together nicely. It was just time for it to happen.

With four Eps under your belt, how are you prepared to tell the world that World Fameless will be a different kind of electro-industrial that they haven't seen from your project as of yet? What's different about this record than the others?

Derek: World Fameless really takes a lot of what I learned in creating The Messenger and applies it to a more song-driven release. I tried to make every track on the album a potential single but still maintain its integrity as an album that can take the listener on a journey. Not many of the tracks are from my perspective, narratively. The record is front-loaded with some punchy, upbeat, very traditional-sounding Ghostfeeder tracks to get people involved right off the bat. Guitars are present, but not as up front where they used to be. They have become more of a textural element. The album changes the deeper you get into it. About half of the way through, the subject matter of the material takes a more introspective, much less satirical turn. World Fameless sets up a certain expectation early on, but then changes the game subtly enough that the listener never realizes that they went from rocking out industrially to being throbbed by a hybrid electronic/tribal dance beat that I created by recording myself beating pots and pans with drumsticks. By the end of the album, I think listeners will find themselves in a very different mode than they were in at the onset. I feel that this transition is also indicative of the direction I am moving Ghostfeeder in: with less reliance on the standards I have set up for the project in the past and more willingness to embrace the unpredictable and the minimal. I’m hoping this release will guide fans into a new era of Ghostfeeder by starting them with the familiar, and easing them into some new territory, hopefully leaving them satisfied, but eager to hear what’s next.

You recently released a psychedelic music video called 'Let The Wolves Inside'. This song is serving as a precursor to World Fameless. How has the song been received? I also see that you made the video; why did you decide to make the video in such a fashion? Was it just for style or was there a deeper meaning?

Derek: The song has been very well-received, which means a lot to me because I feel like, sonically, it represents the turning point for the album as well as the project itself that I mentioned previously. It would have been safer for me to release one of the earlier, more immediate songs off of the album as the first single, but I thought it was important that people be “re-introduced” to Ghostfeeder. The video for 'Let The Wolves Inside' is, to be frank, a purely a visual effort and not tied into the meaning of the song. However, it does call back once more to the more synthetic, minimal, electronic future I have planned.

And what is the new album World Fameless all about? It seems to have a bit of a celebrity pop culture parody going on, but I think there's more to it than that. Or maybe I'm completely wrong. What does the title stand for to you and why did you choose it?

Derek: The title is absolutely tongue in cheek and is meant to be a sarcastic look at the fact that hard work and endurance does not always guarantee success exactly how you want it to be, so deal with it! As a rule, I hate being cynical. I feel like it’s an easy, lazy way out of facing your own insecurities. If you say the deck is stacked against you all the time, then you don’t even have to try to make something of yourself. That’s not at all my style. However, I dipped my toe in the cynical pool for the title track of the album and it felt good to vent a little “frustrated artist” angst just for the sake of having some fun. I’m a huge fan of Mindless Self Indulgence, and the way Jimmy is able to make such sharp social satire while also being so self-deprecating is really, I think, an overlooked asset to that band. I give my adoration for that kind of lyrical push and pull some credit for the creation of the title track.

The title’s origin is unclear to me. I remember Luke joking that we were becoming “World Fameless” at some point. I really liked the irony and contradiction present in those two words. In spite of the eight million other terrible puns that have happened between us, this one lingered in my memory and felt like it somehow meant something significant. It felt like an iconic-sounding name. It has just the right amount of snark/self-deprecation to make people feel like they can be in on the joke.

Whatever themes and what-not you attempted to bring out with the title of the album, do you think you were able to both bring that out lyrically and musically on the album? If so, how?

Derek: I do feel that I was able to bring my ideas to fruition, although I think that much of what the title says expires as soon as the first song is over, lyrically. The title was meant more to be a snapshot of who I am and where I am at the time of this album’s release as opposed to a pervasive theme in the music itself.

I guess the biggest question when it comes to your new album is: How do you feel about World Fameless? Do you think it's your best work to date? Or do you find yourself wanting to go back and fix up the album here and there?

Derek: World Fameless is definitely the Ghostfeeder album that people should hear first. It’s an ideal primer. I think it serves as a good introduction to the project as it covers a wide spectrum and shows the breadth of what Ghostfeeder can be. It’s in my nature to micromanage and nitpick myself into oblivion, but I definitely do feel that this is my strongest, most focused release thus far.

Any personal favorite songs on the album that you would absolutely point out to listeners as the go-to track on the album?

Derek: 'Claws And Teeth'. I wouldn’t say that it’s the album’s “go-to” track, but it’s an important song to me, as it was written lyrically almost immediately after the attacks in Paris. I’m not sure if it’s me getting older and softer or the result of being regularly bombarded with tragedy over the past few years, but these mass murders and attacks are beginning to have a profound effect on me. Paris left me terribly angry and then the recent shooting in Orlando not only hit close to home geographically, but just made me so terribly upset. Never in my entire life has a news story brought me to literal tears, but that made it happen. With every new massacre, I just feel more and more hopelessly frustrated. For me, making music is the only way I can vent certain frustrations or soothe very specific kinds of sadness.

'Claws And Teeth' is about how we dress up in our fancy clothes, drive around in our cars and go to the shopping mall, but human beings are still absolute animals. We pretend that we aren’t. We pretend that violence is abhorrent, but it’s present in almost every form of entertainment we have. We take too much pleasure in punishment. We don’t have to kill to survive anymore, so we have had to find new, ridiculous reasons to do it. I feel that we are capable of more than being angry and violent, but until we are able to shed whatever brand of fear causes us to have so much disdain for one another we’re going to be stuck. At the time of me writing this I am just learning that there was an attack in Turkey at an airport. When is this going to end?

And what does the future hold for Ghostfeeder? Live shows, remixes, a not-so-far-off EP? Could you tell us about any of that or any other plans you may have with Ghostfeeder?

Derek: There will be more national touring in the near future and into next year that I am not at liberty to disclose just yet, but I am very excited about it. I don’t have concrete plans at this point for the next record, although I definitely have some new songs in the works, as always, as well as a theme that I am considering exploring. The next album will, I think, have a lot more in common with The Messenger than World Fameless. I’m looking forward to possibly telling another story and further pushing myself into unexplored, weird, minimal territory. If you’re not scared, you’re not improving. That’s what I tell myself, anyway! I am also planning on shooting a series of videos of myself performing live in my practice space in the coming months. I’d like to give people that aren’t able to see me play in person a chance to get to know what a Ghostfeeder performance looks and sounds like these days.

And, lastly, I'd like to thank you for your time and wish you the best! The space below is yours to say what you wish. Cheers!

Derek: Thank you so much for the opportunity to share my thoughts with you and tell everyone a bit about Ghostfeeder. I would like to remind readers that they can stay in touch with me by liking Ghostfeeder on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

World Fameless and all of my past EPs, shirts, and even original paintings can be purchased at Bandcamp, and my new video for 'Let The Wolves Inside' can be viewed on YouTube.

I have a lot of fun online and I love meeting new fans. Social media has really become the cornerstone of success in this business and I encourage everyone to reach out to their favorite artists and get in touch with them. Share their work across platforms, comment on their posts, and let them know you appreciate what they do! The world will be better as a result, I promise.

I’d also like to give a shout out to Jim at Distortion Productions for releasing World Fameless and believing in the project as well as my girl Jen for always lending a helpful ear, being beyond supportive, and (most of the time) keeping me from going crazy in such a weird, unpredictable, and constantly changing pursuit of a life in music.

Steven Gullotta

I've been writing for Brutal Resonance since November of 2012 and now serve as the editor-in-chief. I love the dark electronic underground and usually have too much to listen to at once but I love it. I am also an editor at Aggressive Deprivation, a digital/physical magazine since March of 2016. I support the scene as much as I can from my humble laptop.